51³Ô¹Ï

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General. UNAT held that it was satisfied that Ms Akello’s involvement in the private company Blessed Seasons, which was on a UN list of companies providing escort vehicle services, met the standard of business activity and enterprise prohibited by former Staff Regulation 1. 2(m) and that her activities amounted to a conflict of interest. UNAT held that, in ruling otherwise, UNDT erred in law and fact and the Secretary-General’s appeal succeeded on that ground. On the issue of whether the very fact that the Internal Affairs Unit investigation, having...

UNAT held that, whilst not all the allegations of misconduct with which the staff member was charged were proven, it was established by UNDT that the Appellant failed to apply formal methods of solicitation in respect of contracts, in violation of UNFPA Financial Regulations, Rules and Procurement Procedures and also failed to refer a contract to the UNFPA Headquarters Contracts Review Committee, in violation of further norms. UNAT held that the Appellant had not established any errors of fact or law warranting reversal of the impugned judgment. UNAT held that UNDT correctly declined to accept...

UNAT held that UNDT did not commit an error of fact or law when it concluded that the difference of treatment between the Appellant and his former colleagues who had undergone a competitive selection process was lawful. UNAT held that it was reasonable and lawful to treat them differently at the time of deciding about the possible extension of his fixed-term appointment because equality meant not only the equal treatment of equals but also the unequal treatment of unequal. UNAT held that there was no flaw in the motivation of the impugned judgment that could result in a manifestly unreasonable...

UNAT considered an appeal by the Commissioner-General and a cross-appeal by Mr Jibara. UNAT held that UNRWA DT lacked jurisdiction to decide on the scope of the Oslo Accords signed by Israel and the Palestinian National Authority or the legality of the detention and imprisonment. UNAT recalled that it was not the role of UNDT to substitute its own decision for that of the Administration. UNAT recalled that, having established misconduct and the seriousness of the incident, UNAT cannot review the level of a sanction imposed except in cases of obvious absurdity or flagrant arbitrariness. UNAT...

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General. UNAT held that it was satisfied that the sanction was not disproportionate and noted that the Secretary-General could have chosen to summarily dismiss Mr Nasrallah or to separate him without compensation and indemnities. UNAT held that, although no investigation was necessary as the facts were not contested, the Organisation committed an egregious error in taking almost two years to finalise the disciplinary proceedings. UNAT noted that this delay worked in Mr Nasrallah’s favour, permitting him to benefit from two years’ further service. UNAT...

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General against judgment Nos. UNDT/2011/209 (on liability) and UNDT/2012/062 (on relief). UNAT held that there was no evidence to support the UNDT’s conclusion that, had the UN Staff Pension Committee (UNSPC) not proceeded with its determination, Ms Shanks would more likely than not have been found fit to resume her duties. UNAT held that the only valid conclusion available on the medical evidence was that Ms Shanks was not entitled to return to work on a part-time basis since she was not able to obtain medical clearance permitting it. UNAT held that...

UNAT held that concern about a high-level manager’s poor performance was not an improper motive or basis for the decision not to renew a fixed-term appointment. UNAT noted that it was well within the discretion of UNDT to determine the amount of compensation for moral damages to award a staff member for procedural violations in light of the unique circumstances of each case. UNAT held that the cases cited by the Appellant as examples of higher awards were neither applicable nor persuasive. UNAT held that UNDT did not err in awarding moral damages of USD 25,000. UNAT held there was no merit in...

As a preliminary issue, UNAT held that UNRWA DT did not follow the proper procedure when it allowed the Respondent to participate in the proceedings without a formal request for waiver of time limit for filing its answer and taking part in the trial. UNAT held that another significant irregularity took place during the proceedings before UNRWA DT, in light of which UNAT was compelled to annul the judgment and remand the case for a de novo consideration by a different UNRWA DT Judge, namely that UNRWA DT committed an error in procedure when it denied the Appellant’s request for a copy of the...

UNAT held that the Appellant did not identify any evidence that contradicted the findings of UNDT regarding the abolition of her post. UNAT recalled the broad discretion of UNDT to determine the admissibility of evidence and the discretion of UNDT to decide whether the presence of witnesses is required and to limit oral evidence. UNAT held that the Appellant failed to demonstrate that UNDT erred in declining to hear the proffered evidence. UNAT held that UNDT erred in law in allowing testimony to be given at its hearing that was neither sworn, affirmed, nor made under a promise to tell the...

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General. UNAT held that UNDT had correctly stated that even if it could be argued that the profile of the Broadcast Technology Officer (BTO P-4) post had changed due to the drafting of new Terms of Reference (TOR) by Ms Hermann, the only viable course of action in the circumstances for the purposes of filling it would have been a regular, competitive selection process and not a comparative review as happened in this case. UNAT held that UNDT was correct in finding that the so-called comparative review between Ms Hersh and Mr Tobgyal for the only post...